This year's edition of San Diego Comic-Con was a slightly more subdued affair than usual.
Amidst much of the usual hype for all things geeky, both Marvel Studios and HBO skipped
the event entirely.
Still, even with those two powerhouses missing, there was plenty to talk about - both good
and bad.
Here's a look at the 4 best and 4 worst reveals at San Diego Comic-Con 2018.
Best: The Shazam! Trailer
DC's slate of superhero films have been criticized in the past for being too dark and serious.
Well, it seems like Warner Bros. was listening, because the first trailer for Shazam! was
an unbridled joy, full of fun and laughs.
From pop culture references to star Zachary Levi's wide-eyed glee as a boy stuck in a
superhero's body, everything about Shazam! was pitch perfect, making it one of the best
debuts in recent Comic-Con history.
Worst: Bumblebee's baddie
Generally speaking, the Transformers prequel Bumblebee looks like it's heading in the right
direction, with a scaled down story and more human-sized emotional content.
But fans were gravely disappointed when director Travis Knight revealed at a Comic-Con panel
that the flying Decepticon in the trailer is not who fans hoped and expected it to be,
saying
"I'm gonna break a few hearts here today.
It is not Starscream."
Instead, it turns out the bad guy is actually Blitzwing, a Decepticon who just happens to
look a lot like the fan favorite villain Starscream.
It seems kind of like a mean trick, but then again, should we really be surprised at deception
from a Decepticon?
Best: The Aquaman trailer
Described as Star Wars set beneath the sea, and led by a dazzling cast featuring Jason
Momoa, Nicole Kidman, Patrick Wilson, and Amber Heard, Aquaman wasn't just one of Warner
Bros.' most anticipated reveals at this year's SDCC, it was also one of its best.
Between Momoa's Aquaman facing off with Wilson's villainous, shark-riding Orm to become the
rightful ruler of Atlantis and all those breathtaking underwater set pieces, the Aquaman trailer
was, as The Hollywood Reporter put it, the best received at Comic-Con.
Our appetite has definitely been whet.
"That was the worst pep talk, ever."
Worst: The James Gunn double whammy
Even though Marvel Studios skipped Comic-Con, they still managed to make the biggest headlines
- but not in a good way.
On Friday, July 20th, the second day of Comic-Con, it was announced that writer and director
James Gunn had been fired from Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 after a conservative website
unearthed some controversial tweets Gunn posted prior to landing his gig with Marvel.
Gunn had been scheduled to appear at Sony's Comic-Con panel later that evening to announce
a secret project, but in the wake of his firing, that appearance was cancelled as well, leaving
the status of the project up in the air.
Gunn getting fired and then not appearing at SDCC was a twofold shocker one Twitter
user best summed up: "It's crazy that the only thing the MCU brought to Comic-Con this
year was the firing of James Gunn."
Best: The Glass trailer
Nearly two decades after his 2000 hit Unbreakable, director M. Night Shyamalan finally unveiled
the trailer for the long awaited sequel, Glass, which also acts as a follow-up to 2017's Split.
Stylish, wonderfully self-aware, sprinkled with action, and featuring Sarah Paulson as
a psychiatrist who specializes in treating super-powered people, Glass looks to be an
ambitious return to form.
We can't wait to see how it all turns out.
Worst: The Johnny Depp debacle
After unleashing a magical trailer for Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald, Warner
Bros. gave Comic-Con a rollicking good time, with a panel featuring stars Jude Law and
Ezra Miller.
Unfortunately, those good times turned a little sour when embattled actor Johnny Depp showed
up in full costume as the villainous Gellert Grindelwald.
Appearing to a very mixed reaction of cheers and boos, Depp pressed forward with a pre-written
monologue.
But for some fans, the appearance was particularly jarring given his ex-wife Amber Heard, who
famously accused Depp of domestic abuse, appeared on the same stage less than two hours later
to promote Aquaman.
Reaction online was particularly negative, with one Twitter user writing,
"The fact that the audience didn't boo Johnny Depp off the stage at Comic-Con highly disappoints
me."
Best: Star Wars: The Clone Wars lives!
"A war left unfinished… until now."
Those six words sent attendees at this year's San Diego Comic-Con into fits of unbridled
joy, as Disney and Lucasfilm announced the return of the fan favorite animated series
Star Wars: The Clone Wars, which Disney had abruptly cancelled when they acquired the
rights to Star Wars way back in 2013.
Now fans finally will get their wish, as Clone Wars supervising director Dave Filoni said
that the 12-episode revival, which is set to debut on Disney's upcoming new streaming
service, only happened because of viewers' relentless enthusiasm and support.
Turns out anything is truly possible with The Force.
Worst: Bye-bye, Rick
In May, 2018, fans of the wildly popular TV series The Walking Dead were thrown for a
loop when reports began swirling that Andrew Lincoln, who plays lead Rick Grimes, would
be leaving the show for good during the show's upcoming ninth season.
Lincoln, however, remained mum, leading some fans to hope that maybe those reports were
wrong.
Unfortunately, though, Lincoln dashed those hopes during his appearance at Comic-Con,
telling bereaved fans that he was indeed quitting.
"This will be my last season playing the part of Rick Grimes.
This has been the most extraordinary, amazing, and beautiful experience of my career […] These
guys here [...] are the greatest surrogate family I could have wished for.
But I do have a real family, and it's time for me to go home."
We're not crying, you are.